Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

By Neil Downing and Gina Macris
Journal staff writers

U.S. Rep. Jim Langevin and U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse said Monday they support President Obama's efforts involving a segment of the U.S. auto industry.

"I'm glad that President Obama is taking a tough stand on the reorganization of the
auto industry," Langevin said in an interview following a meeting of the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce.

"It's nice to see a little consequence," Whitehouse said as he addressed about 70 high school students from all over Rhode Island who came together at the State House to discuss current affairs in the 10th annual Global Rhode Island Day.

Their comments came as Obama laid out a plan for General Motors and Chrysler, offering them a limited period of time to work with creditors, unions and other stakeholders "to fundamentally restructure in a way that would justify an investment of additional tax dollars."

During the limited period, the companies will have to produce plans that will give Americans confidence in the companies' long-term prospects for success, Obama said.
The Obama administration recently pushed out the chairman of General Motors and also instructed Chrysler to form a partnership with Fiat, a motor vehicle manufacturer based in Italy.

Langevin said he appreciates how important the industry is and how many people it employs. But the industry needs to make "the tough decisions" if it is to survive and thrive amid global competition and other challenges, he said.

The federal government "can't just keep pumping billions of dollars" into the industry without oversight and the promise of reform, Langevin said after the meeting, held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Warwick.

At the State House event, Whitehouse answered a question about the auto industry bailout from Kevin Borelli, a senior at Cranston West.

"In a perfect world, we would not bail them out," Whitehouse said.

"You want to preserve a moral edge," he said, the notion that people must live with the results of their action.

But the auto industry is so entwined with the rest of the American economy that the government cannot stand aside, he said.

Students also heard from U.S. Sen. Jack Reed during the event, the culmination of a year-long curriculum sponsored by the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University.

On Sunday, GM chairman Rick Wagoner announced his departure, at the request of the White House.

On Monday, Obama outlined a plan that gives GM 60 days of working capital while it comes up with a new restructuring plan. Similarly, Chrysler would get 30 days of financing while it sees a partnership with Fiat as a condition of qualifying for additional aid.

 Tags  Crowne Plaza Hotel General Motors GM Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce Neil Downing President Obama Rhode Island Warwick

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